Davos: the perfect opportunity to take the pulse of the business community

Alliance TV caught up with Simon Sproule, Director for marketing communications at Renault-Nissan, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, who spoke about the Alliance’s key aims for the four-day event. The Alliance, which is a strategic partner of the annual meeting of international business leaders and politicians, will be raising awareness of three exciting auto-related technologies: connected cars, electric vehicles and autonomous driving.

“2014 will be a busy year,” said Sproule. “We’ll be launching lots of new products, and this is a great opportunity to learn and share views with other industry leaders.”

Sproule said that Davos is a great showcase and educational opportunity for the potential of new auto-related technologies. “We want to show people the technology is here. It’s real and it’s got practical application,” he said. The Alliance has brought two 100% electric electric vehicles to Davos – the Renault ZOE and the Nissan LEAF which is being used to power a hot cocoa maker with renewable energy from Davos.

“For me, this is a great opportunity to hear about new industries and new trends, and to exchange views,” he said. “Davos occurs at the start of the calendar and the financial year for a lot of corporations and we can really take the pulse of the business community.”

“People think that some of this technology is a long way off, but it’s closer than they realize. The connected car is a reality, and autonomous vehicles are in sight.”

The Renault-Nissan Alliance plans to be the first to launch an affordable autonomous car for the global market in 2020 under the Nissan brand.